arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Sergio M. C. V. Goncalves.
We present the findings of an investigation of critical behavior in the collapse of spherically symmetric distributions of massive scalar field. Two distinct types of phase transition are observed at the verge of black hole formation and a criterion for determining when each type of transition will occur is given.
We study critical behavior in the collapse of massive spherically symmetric scalar fields. We observe two distinct types of phase transition at the threshold of black hole formation. Type II phase transitions occur when the radial extent $(λ)$ of the initial pulse is less than the Compton wavelength ($μ^{-1}$) of the scalar field. The critical solution is that found by Choptuik in the collapse of massless scalar fields. Type I phase transitions, where the black hole formation turns on at finite mass, occur when $λμ\gg 1$. The critical solutions are unstable soliton stars with masses $\alt 0.6 μ^{-1}$. Our results in combination with those obtained for the collapse of a Yang-Mills field~{[M.~W. Choptuik, T. Chmaj, and P. Bizon, Phys. Rev. Lett. 77, 424 (1996)]} suggest that unstable, confined solutions to the Einstein-matter equations may be relevant to the critical point of other matter models.
Two-point functions of the scalar curvature for metric fluctuations on the four-sphere are analysed. The two-point function for points separated by a fixed distance and for metrics of fixed volume is calculated using spacetime foam methods. This result can be used for comparison between the continuum approach to quantum gravity and numerical quantum gravity on the lattice. Pacs numbers: 04.60.Gw, 04.60.Nc, 04.62.+v
It is shown that there exists a range of parameters in which gravitational collapse with a spherically symmetric massive scalar field can be treated as if it were collapsing dust. This implies a criterion for the formation of black holes depending on the size and mass of the initial field configuration and the mass of the scalar field.